LifeStream @ First Unitarian

In this first episode, Rev. Dr. Larry Peers talks with First Unitarian member Dr. Michael Morton-Wiedner to learn some of his Life Journey.

Rev. Dr. Larry Peers - “It is just the beginning...” What would you say if you were to complete this sentence on this Sunday? However, we complete this sentence, especially at this critical moment in our country’s history and/or the various critical moments in our lives; we often grapple for a meaning that will help propel us forward.

Rev. Dr. Larry Peers reflects, "The Buddhist teacher and anthropologist Joan Halifax offers this wisdom which serves as the inspiration for this service: 'Our journey through life is one of peril and possibility–and sometimes both at once. How can we stand on the threshold between suffering and freedom and remain informed by both worlds?' Through her social activism, her work wit

Rev. Dr. Larry Peers explores how what Mark Nepo says about deep listening also be what we might say about practicing peace? Nepo writes: “I learned that listening this deeply is an act of creation that shapes us beyond our will…But I’m also discovering after all these years that listening deeply over time is one of uninterrupted growing — one continuous act.” Can we allo

Rev. Dr. Larry Peers reflects on this exhortation from past president of the Unitarian Universalist Association, Susan Frederick-Grey, “This is no time for a casual faith…We are living in times of heartbreak, violence, and pain, and in this time we need communities that remind us of our humanity.” What does this faith mean to you? How has our own personal and collective UU fa

Rev. Dr. Larry Peers reflects that Unitarian Universalism is rooted in the here and now and is concerned with the conditions for everyone in this life. We like to say that we “Love the Hell Out of This World.” Even when things can seem so bad and uncertain, what does it mean for us to be centered in a love that liberates? With musician Steve Winwood, can we declare, “Think ab

In this sermon, Rev. Dr. Larry Peers asks what useful insight can we draw from the worldly spirituality of Henry David Thoreau? How could Thoreau’s quest for a “natural life” also be a model for our own personal growth and ethical purpose for us as well? What insights might we gather for how we approach this summertime when the natural world tends to beckon us to be awake in

To find your voice, ask yourself some questions. In his sermon, our program staff member Jon Claney draws on personal experience to illustrate how the questions we ask transform our inner voice and ultimately what we share with the world. While this is good to think about at any time, it is particularly relevant for Unitarian Universalists as we consider changes to our principles a

Rev. Dr. Larry Peers share that most contemporary Unitarian Universalists don’t know much about our European heritage or the creative engagement, mutual engagement, and mutual influence that our Unitarian Christian ancestors had with Islam and Judaism early in our history. Drawing on historian Susan Ritchie’s research in “Children of the Same God: The Historical Relationship